Having started building in November 2015, I'm relieved to say that my FS14 hit the water this weekend, and I'm delighted by her looks and handling.

While having a bit of 'Gentleman's Launch' about her I intend to use the boat as a tender for our barge, for surveying rocky waters for charts, and for fishing, as we work up and down the River Shannon here in Ireland with our barge.

I'll admit that I may have gone a bit OTT with some of the wood (it was gifted, beautiful, and had to be used...) and there's a lot more ply and fibreglass than on the plans. However, it was immediately obvious on her maiden voyage that she's immensely solid and stable, and quite capable of being circled full lock at full throttle without a murmur or a slip. She may yet prove a little too heavy for the 15hp Suzuki she was designed for as she won't quite go on the plane, but these are early days, there's lots of tuning yet to be done, and the transom is more than man enough to take something a little larger if that's the only answer.